The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1887-03-24
THE DAILY NEWS
Our PHYSICAL GeographY.

OuI ssCuA otoS
Professor Kost, State Geologist. speak,
of the formation of Florida's surface
our soil and lakes, our primitive pop
ulation and the fossils they left behinG
them, as follows:
The physical geography If this perioc
was one which affords much interest Il
the geologist. The bays and lakes Were
much more numerous in the middle ter
tiary age than as now. These were OF
various depths. Some were quite deep
others shallow. and widely extended, as
Lake Okeechobee is now. The deep
ones, when opening to the sea, were al
ways Astounding with the larger hshes'
as the sharks, whales, rays and the man
atee. But the sharks were most abun-
dant. The shallow bays teemed with
OYSTERS, CLAIMS and other shell fish, ana
We're populated by birds in large num-
bers, but their remains being more per
ishable, are less frequently FOUND. Inc
reptiles. as alligator. turtle and serpents,
abounded also.
1t is evident that the waves from the
sea encroached upon the shallow savan-
mas frequently, else the remains OF the
land animals could not have been pre-
served, except as thus swept INTO the sea
or buried in the marshes
moicene age. and storms were furious;
and these Incidents can alone explain
the almost universally broken state of
the fossils we find.
In the after age. when the pliocene
and uuarternary times came IN, there
was a submergence OF the lana once
again This is proven, not only by the
character of the fossils, but the deposit
of the vast amount of clay and SAND so
oil the lower beds.
These were not successive wave deposits
upon a retiring shore, for such character
istics are not thus impressed: nor could
these great clay deposits be thrown
ashore from the depths of the sea IN a
manner so clean and distinct Not only
was Florida again engulfed by the sea,
but Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana ana
sections of Tennessee, Arkansas ana
Texas.
The Gulf stream then passed over much
Of these submerged lands, and cut away
from sections. westward, which has ex-
i,ted as swells or hills. Thus our Florida
CLAW came from ridges in lower Alabama,
thus cut away and carried by the Gun
stream through the Florida sea or north
ern portion of the Gulf, then extending
into lower Georgia.
Our iron, clay and much of our sand Is
from Alabama, where the carbonlferous
Deus are cut AWAY anu CAV W eAiNAi
iron and sand, as also various other MIN
erals that are found here,
Only one other theory, and the facts OF
which come into the bounds of probabil-
ity. can readily account for the clay, iron,
etc. which we have. This theory con-
templates what seems an almost abso-
lutte geographical necessity. ii Is. that
broad belt connecting North and South
America, from Florida To New Grenada,
through the range of the Antilles and
Caribbean Isles, formerly existed. This
seems evidently to have been wider than
that now existing through Central Amer
ira, making the continental continuation
When this belt or continental section was
disntegrated by the trade currents that
now in continuation constitute our Gulf
stream, then our clays and pliocene ma
teriaI NAV have had their derivation
from thence. Surely all this material
was not brought down from GeorgIa, as
the physical facts all disprove it, and
this with unanimity OF evidence that
makes il seemingly a law.
Following the inquiry concerning the
prevalent physical geography of Florida,
| make adversion to the cause of the hills
and valleys of our State; and while such
questions as already stated, may seem
to be too premature, owing to the incip-
iency of the survey. it is. i'll the Co
ordinate case, also of Use IN explanation
of other necessary facts. Still an ex-
haustive disquisition is by no means pos
sible now. The question must be settled
as to the facts of upheaval ON the one
hand and those of erosion on the other,
before n satisfactory thesis can be af-
forded.
We discover that the bed rocks of Flor
lila were not only lifted, in all parts from
the depths of tine sea. but we know al
most equally well that the uplift was not
an even or simple one. 1t consisted. not
of secular rise but of paroxysmal phe-
nomena. such as have tilted rocks as they
are now found to be, and which have
lifted rock beds into respectable alti-
tudes. On hill just west of the col !
laqe building at Tallahassee are strata |
Z lifted and tilted even into vertical POI
salons. These strata have alterations !
of flint rocks, sandstone and limestone; |
and these are interstratified by clays. /
Similar facts are found elsewhere also. /
Hence those who are disposed to rob our !
State of the element of variety in its .
physical geography and geological char /
acteristics, had better finish their sayings /
before the geological survey of this State /
is published.